Professional crime gang targeted homes to steal more than £300,000 worth of cars

A professional crime gang targeted homes to steal more than £300,000 worth of cars, a court heard.

They mounted a well-organised campaign of planned burglaries to steal high-value motors.

They were linked to 26 burglaries and 27 stolen cars in Middlesbrough, Stockton, Thornaby and Eaglescliffe from September 2012 to April 2013.

Prosecutor David Brooke told Teesside Crown Court: “The group targeted homes, stealing the keys to vehicles parked outside the owners' homes.

"The vast majority occurred when the house was occupied, often when the occupants were asleep in bed.

“The total value of the stolen vehicles is well in excess of £300,000.

“The offending was determined. On some nights, up to three houses were being targeted.

“It was quite plain there was a high degree of planning involved.

“The overall pattern demonstrates a systematic targeting of houses for the theft of high-value cars, deposited somewhere safe, number plates changed then moved on.

“The group were quite prepared to get cars from any source and had the organisation to deal with the cars."

Teesside Crown Court heard of the shock, anxiety, stress, trauma, costs and inconvenience suffered by the many victims and their families.

Aged 21 to 66, some with children, included a fire safety officer, two nurses, a cleaner, a dentist, a student, a rigger and a retired man.

They spoke of the emotional and psychological impact, with fear, paranoia, sleep problems, panic attacks and feeling unsafe at home.

Some had to move home after the burglaries. Some came to court to see the burglars sentenced.

One said: “I don’t believe these people consider their actions when committing these despicable crimes.”

Another said: “The people who have done this are thoughtless thugs.

“Disgraceful human beings who really need to learn how to work for things themselves rather than stealing from other people.”

One woman said: “They deserve everything they get and they should receive long sentences in prison as they are horrible people.”

The burglars often reached in and stole keys left near doors, “fished” through letterboxes, broke in or snuck into homes.

Mr Brooke said they used a sophisticated system using false plates to get rid of the cars quickly "for considerable financial gain".

They deposited cars for a "cooling-off period", travelled in convoys and used careful methods to thwart detection. Cars were often taken to Billingham.

Five cars worth a total of £58,000 have still not been recovered, 14 were found, four crashed and three recovered in parts.

The six conspirators were arrested 50 times between them during the plot, but without direct evidence they were bailed, and carried on burgling.

At one point, two of the conspirators spotted police watching them and said: “You’ll have to try harder than that to hide.”

Mr Brooke said the main conspirator was Trevor Keenan who was involved in 15 burglaries.

He said Keenan drove valuable cars, renovated his home, took a holiday to Egypt and had photos of vehicles parked around Middlesbrough in his home.

Donovan admitted involvement in nine burglaries - he is already serving an 18-month sentence for one of them - and asked for another 16 burglaries to be taken into account.

Ashley Brown and Brad Anderson were involved in eight burglaries each, Lee-Jay Brown five, and Luke O’Neill was involved in removing cars after three burglaries.

The police mounted a complex six-month operation to catch the gang, with 30 officers involved in the operation costing about £350,000.

There were more than 200 witnesses including 14 undercover officers.

With little fingerprint or forensic evidence, officers relied on telephone, surveillance, eyewitness, tracker and number plate recognition evidence.

Six men - Keenan, 30, of Keith Road, Grove Hill, Middlesbrough; Ashley Brown, 23, of Askham Close, Middlesbrough; Lee-Jay Brown, 20, of Holme House Prison; Hackleton, 21, of Ayresome Street, Middlesbrough; Anderson, 20, of Brompton Street, Middlesbrough; and O’Neill, 20, of West Lane, Whinney Banks, Middlesbrough, all admitted conspiracy to burgle.

Hackleton asked for another 16 burglaries to be taken into account. Anderson admitted a separate charge of vehicle taking.

The six have more than 320 previous offences between them.

Rod Hunt, defending Keenan, said: "Nothing can turn the clock back to put right what has been done.

"Regrettably, there are worse cases."

He said it was accepted Keenan was a "facilitator" for 15 burglaries with his skills and advice, and helped transport and deliver vehicles.

But he denied that Keenan was a "mastermind", "master criminal" or "controller".

Mr Hunt argued they were all equally responsible, and some of the burglaries were opportunistic.

He said the gang acted extremely locally and did not travel far and wide or steal cars "by shopping list".

He added Keenan had lost a child and his holiday was funded by family and friends, not crime.

Mr Hunt also represented Anderson, who he said was illiterate, "not the brightest bulb in the chandelier", and admitted roaming estates looking for things to steal.

He said Anderson had changed as he become a father, wanted to better himself and hoped for forgiveness from the victims.

Nigel Soppitt, representing Hackleton, said he showed exceptional remorse and courage in his plea and confessions, and made "seismic shift" towards reform.

He said Hackleton was from a broken home, "ran loose", took drugs and was an "eager and willing pair of hands" to be recruited and used by others.

Kieran Rainey, defending Ashley Brown, said he now recognised the impact on the victims.

Mr Rainey said: "He hadn't really considered it at the time.

"He received no great financial gain from his involvement. He's not a rich man living the high life. He doesn't own a house, he doesn't own a car."

He said Ashley "dipped in and out" of the plot, was present at two burglaries and helped move cars after six others, but was not a director or organiser.

David Lamb, for Lee-Jay Brown, said he was sorry, he wouldn't do it again and wanted to work and lead a law-abiding life.

He said the young dad was the driver of stolen vehicles at five burglaries in one week, including three in one day, before he "bowed out".

O'Neill's barrister Peter Makepeace said he was an impressionable, unsophisticated man "under the thrall of others", and he played the least role in the plot for less than a month.

The joiner came from a decent, law-abiding family who were devastated by what he did, and he had learnt his lesson from his difficult first time in custody.

Two more men - Philip Johnson, 39, of Rutherglen Walk, Eaglescliffe, and John Wilkes, 37, of Lulsgate, Thornaby - admitted handling stolen goods.

The handlers' barristers said they were unsophisticated and didn't know the cars came from home burglaries.

Andrew Turton, for Johnson, said he was an unsophisticated mechanic who made "a few extra pounds on the side" from a hobby.

He said Johnson was foolishly drawn into it through his associations and was an"outlet" for three vehicles.

The dad-of-three helped care for his brother with Down's syndrome, suffered depression, was awaiting an operation and had not been to crown court or to prison before.

Johnson was allowed to attend a funeral during the two-day sentencing hearing.

Richard Bennett, representing Wilkes, said he was the very least involved, kept out of trouble for a year and asked for a suspended sentence.

He said Wilkes was doing a favour for a friend and received £50 "easy money" for removing an engine, roof and airbags.

He added Wilkes was not involved in the burglaries or with the burglary conspirators, had contact only with his former employer Johnson, and was involved in only two vehicles.

He had few previous convictions and the Probation Service felt he was rehabilitated.

All eight men will be sentenced on Tuesday. All are in custody except O'Neill, Johnson and Wilkes who are on bail.